ESRC GUDTP Postdoctoral Fellowships 2026

SAME Expression of Interest Deadline: 20th April 2026, 10:00am
Confirmation of candidates to be taken forward: 1st May 2026
Full Application Deadline: 1st June 2026, 4:00pm
The ESRC-funded Grand Union Doctoral Training Partnership (GUDTP) will fund five, 9-month Postdoctoral Fellowships to commence on 1 October 2026 and is now inviting Expressions of Interest to be submitted. The Fellowships will be based at one of the GUDTP institutions - Brunel University of London, The Open University, or the University of Oxford.
There will be an Expression of Interest stage for the internal competition, following which SAME will be able to support one application for the full application stage.
Please note, due to the delays from the ESRC, different DTPs will be advertising the Expressions of Interest Call at slightly different times. All information will be live on the relevant DTP website by 1st April 2026. Please contact the relevant DTP for further information regarding timelines.
Expression of Interest stage:
· SAME Deadline 20th April 2026, 10:00am
· Applicants are asked to complete the Expression of Interest Application Form (and an Equal Opportunities Monitoring form), and separately submit a case for support (4 pages on Word A4 maximum, font size 11), and their CV (2 pages on Word A4, font size 11) to research@anthro.ox.ac.uk.
Full application stage:
· Deadline: 1st June 2026, 4:00pm  
· Applicants will need to submit documents as specified by ESRC guidance.
Please see the full details for the call on the GUDTP website, and the FAQs sheet. 
Please note the changes to this scheme this year:
  • The scheme has been reduced from 12-months (or 24-months part-time) to 9-months (or 18-months part-time).
  • The deadline of 30th June 2027 for the end of the Fellowship is fixed and cannot be negotiated. If a Fellowship starts after 1st October 2026, the end date cannot be extended.
  • Due to the reduced time on the Fellowship, the ESRC are not expecting any new research to be conducted in this instance. The Fellowship will focus on consolidating research conducted in the PhD and preparing for the next stage in an academic career.
  • Fellowship activities must be aligned to one of the Grand Union DTP’s 24 thematic pathways and based at least 50% within the social sciences. This means that the fellowships must also be based in a Department or academic unit listed as a host for the relevant pathway (details via the link above). The scheme is unable to accept applications where the candidate would be based in Archaeology, Law (with the exception of the Centres for Socio-Legal Studies and Criminology) or SBS.
  • Applicants are no longer required to have completed their PhD at a DTP institution, but they must have completed their PhD at a UK Institution. Please read the Call and FAQ for full details.
  • International candidates must consider the fellowship length, end date and any visa issues which may arise when deciding whether they wish to apply. It is the responsibility of the candidate to confirm any visa restrictions and requirements.